Vacuum cleaner nozzles



Oct. 29, 1963 o. L. ALLEN ETAL 3,108,310

VACUUM CLEANER NOZZLES Filed April 21, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INV EN TORS aL/vse L. mas/v JOHN ZFfeefiels W/umm P E/rzaz/ WILL/0M 7? VEEMEl/lE/V THEIR ATTORNEY 1953 o. 1... ALLEN ETAL 08,310

VACUUM CLEANER NOZZLES Filed April 21. 1961 2 Sheets-$heet 2 INV EN TORS OLIVE? L. Hus/v Jam! 77 FEEEHE/J WILL/9M R E/rzeu WILL mm P l/ezm-ms/v THEIR ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,138,310 VACUUM CLEANER NOZZLES Oliver L. Allen, Riverside, John T. Ferraris, Stamford, William P. Ritzau, Old Greenwich, and William P. Vermeulen, Springdale, Conn, assign'ors to Electrolnx Corporation, Old Greenwich, Conn, a corporation. of Delaware Filed Apr. 21, 196i, Ser. No. 104,635 9 Claims. (Cl. 15-4356) Our invention relates to vacuum cleaner nozzles and more particularly to a nozzle adapted for cleaning both hard and soft surfaces, such as hardwood doors and rugs.

Heretofore, it has been axiomatic that the higher the cleaning efiiciency of a rug nozzle, the harder it has been to move the nozzle over the rug. This was so because the features in a nozzle which made it efiicient, such as adequate penetration of the nozzle lips into the pile of the rug, also made the nozzle resist movement over the rug. If it were attempted to make the nozzle move easier by providing wheels or broad gliding surfaces at or closely adjacent to the nozzle lips, this reduced the penetration of the lips and adversely affected the cleaning ability.

Accordingly, it is an object of our invention to provide a nozzle which has both high cleaning efiiciency and easy maneuverability. This is accomplished by providing narrow lips which may penetrate into the pile of the rug to cause agitation thereof, in combination with rollers and a broad gliding surface for supporting the nozzle, these supporting members however being spaced substantial distances on either side of the narrow lips so as not to prevent penetration of the latter as the rug is lifted against the lips by suction.

In addition, there is provided a floating brush which is desirable for improving the appearance of certain types of rugs and is also desirable for cleaning hard surfaces, the combination of this brush with the roller supporting means making it possible to move the nozzle over a hard surface without scratching the latter. While not essential, means may be provided for retracting the brush from contact with the surface being cleaned if it is not desired to use the brush in connection with certain rugs.

Further objects and advantages of our invention will be apparent from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings which form part of this specification and of which:

FIG. 1 is a top view of a nozzle in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view on an enlarged scale taken on the line Z'2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the nozzle shown in the preceding figures with certain parts broken away;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 55 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional View taken on the line 7-7 of FIG. 4.

Referring to the drawings reference character ltl designates generally a base member which may be a metal die casting or a plastic molded piece. Member ltl is provided with a pair of longitudinally extending walls 12 and 14 which form a nozzle throat 15, the lower relatively narrow edges of the walls forming lips 16 and 18, respectively, which bound the suction opening to the throat. The central portion of forward lip 16 is formed with a series of slots 19. As shown more particularly in PEG. 2, these walls are inclined downwardly in a forward direction. As above stated, the narrowness of the lips enables them to penetrate the pile of a rug and it also increases the velocity of the passing beneath the lips to enter the nozzle throat 15, thus aiding in removing surface litter and embedded dirt.

Above and to the rear of wall 14, member it is formed with a circular seat as adapted to rotatably receive the lower cylindrical portion 22 of a hollow connection mem ber 24. Cylindrical portion 22 is formed with an opening as which communicates with the upper end of the throat 15. The forward wall 12 extends upwardly and is slightly arcuate as is shown at 28 so as to embrace the cylindrical portion 22, the resiliency of the material constituting the wall making it possible during assembly to force the cylindrical portion 22 past the upper arcuate end 28, this resiliency tending to produce an airtight joint between the cylindrical member and the base member Ill.

The base member also includes a third inclined wall 3t) which is parallel to and spaced rearwardly from rear nozzle wall 14 so as to provide a recess 32 therebetween which is open at the bottom. Disposed in this recess is an elongated brush including a rigid back 34 which carries tu-fts of bn'stles 36 which extend downwardly therefrom, the brush being inclined so as to be substantially parallel to the walls 14 and 30. A pair of leaf springs 38 are disposed in the recess 32 above the back 34 and tend to force the brush downwardly so as to project the bristles 36 outwardly and below the plane of the lips 16 and 1 8. As is shown in FIG. 7, a spring clip 4% is disposed at each end of the recess 32 for limiting the downward movement of the brush.

Rearwardly of the wall 3b a plate member 42 is secured to the base member 10 by means of rivets or the like 44 as is best shown in FIG. 3. A disc member 46 having a partially circular serrated periphery is rotatably mounted on the member 42 and carries a pin 43 which engages within a slot Stl formed in a lever arm 52 which is pivotally mounted on the member 42 at 54. At an intermediate point an arm 56 is pivotally mounted on the lever 52 and has an extension '58 which extends through a slot in the wall 30* and underneath the middle of brush back 34-. With the parts in the position shown in FIG. 3, that is with the pin 43 above the center of rotation of the disc 45, the arm 56 is in a raised position and consequently the brush is retracted so that the bristles 36 do not project through the opening in the bottom of the recess 32. However, rotation of the disc 46 in a counter-clockwise direction through approximately causes the pin 4-3 to move to a position below the center of rotation of the disc, thus causing the lever 5'2 to be pivoted downwardly so that it occupies the position shown in FIG. 2 in which the bristles under the action of the springs 38 are projected out of the recess 32.

As is shown more particularly in PEG. 4, a pair of supporting rollers 64 are disposed in spaced relationship in front of the forward wall 12. Each roller is provided with a thin band or tire 61 of rubber or other suitable relatively soft material adjacent to each end thereof. As is shown in FIG. 7 the outer ends of the shafts 62 of these rollers are received in pockets 63 formed in the base member it, while the inner ends of the shafts are received in a pocket 64 formed in the base member, as is shown in FIG. 2. The shafts are retained in these pockets by means of projections 65 and en, respectively, extending downwardly from a cover member designated generally by reference character 68 which is secured to the base member in any suitable manner, such as by bolts, one of which is shown at Til. The cover member 63 is formed with a slot 72 through which extends a portion of the serrated disc 46 so that it is accessible for manual operation by the operator. The cover member 63 may also carry a bumper 74 of relatively soft material which extends therearound for the purpose of preventing the marring of furniture legs and the like. integral with the cover member are retainer members 75 having semi-cylindrical inner surfaces which engage the ends of cylindrical portion 22 of connection member 24 to positively hold portion 22 on the seat 20.

Formed integrally with wall 3% is a gliding surface 76 which is disposed substantially in the plane of the lips 16 and i8, but is spaced rearwardly from the rear lip 14. As is shown more particularly in FIG. 4 this gliding surface 76 extends substantially the entire length of the nozzle, although it is here shown as broken away in the center in order to better show parts located behind it.

Disposed to the rear of the gliding surface is a roller 78 rotatably mounted on 'a shaft and having tires is shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the shaft is formed with semi-circular ends 82 which are received in similarly shaped recesses formed off-center in the hubs of members 84 which are rotatably held in semi-cylindrical recesses in the base by means of retainer members 86, each having a semi-circular end 88. One of the toothed members 84 meshes with teeth 90 formed on a disc member 92 rotatably mounted in base and extending through a slot 94 formed in the cover member 68. Thus, rotation of the member 92 causes rotation of the member 84 which, because of the off-center connection with the shaft 80 causes the latter to be raised or lowered so as to adjust the elevation of the roller 78 with relation to the base member 10. Forward rollers 60 and rear roller 78 are so positioned with respect to base If) that, even with roller 78 in its raised position, the lips 16 and 18 and the surface 76 are above a line tangent to the tires of the front and rear rollers, as seen in FIG. 2, and hence are spaced above any hard surface on which the nozzle is placed.

In operation, if it is desired to use the above described nozzle for cleaning a soft floor covering, such as a carpet or rug, the disc 46 is usually turned to the position shown in FIG. 2 so as to permit the springs 38 to project the bristles 36 outwardly from recess 32. Unless the operator has had experience with the particular rug to be cleaned, the disc 92 may be left in whichever position it has occupied. With the nozzle connected to a source of suction it is then moved by the operator back and forth over the rug. The bristles contacting the rug serve to loosen and remove surface litter, including threads and animal hairs which tend to adhere tenaciously to the pile of the rug, and this material is picked up by the air stream entering the throat 15. At the same time, the suction tends to lift the fioor covering into contact with the lips 16 and 18 and the gliding surface 76. The relatively thin lips tend to penetrate into the pile of the rug, thus agitating it as the nozzle is moved thereover which action is effective in aiding the air stream to remove embedded dirt.

While the lips penetrate the pile, as above stated, the rollers 68 and 78 and the gliding surface 76 tend to ride on the upper surface of the pile so as to make it relatively easy to move the nozzle over the surface, but inasmuch as they are spaced from the lips the latter are able to penetrate the pile for effective cleaning. If the roller 78 is in its uppermost position, the lips are able to penetrate a maximum amount. On some types of rug this may cause the nozzle to move too hard, and it may be made to push easier by rotating the disc 92 so to lower the roller 78, thus raising the rest of the nozzle.

Regardless of the position of adjustment of the rear roller 78, the nozzle is suitable for cleaning hard surfaces inasmuch as the rollers 69 and 78 serve to space the lips 16 and 18 and the gliding surface '76 slightly above the hard surface being cleaned regardless of whether roller '78 is in its raised or lowered position. As previously described, these rollers are preferably provided with thin rubber rings or tires 61 and 81, respectively, so that only these rubber members and the bristles contact the hard surface, thus eliminating all possibility of scratching or marring. As the nozzle is moved back and forth over the 4 hard surface, the bristles 36 dislodge dust therefrom which is picked up by the air stream.

11 the other hand, the thin tires 61 and 81 penetrate a soft floor covering so that the remaining wide surfaces of the rollers 60 and 78 and the fiat surface 76 are effective in supporting the nozzle. As is seen in FIG. 2 the lips 16 and 18 terminate, and surface '76 is disposed, in a plane substantially tangent to the above mentioned surfaces of rollers 60 and 78, whereas the lips 16 and 18 and the surface 76 are slightly above a plane tangent to the tires 61 and 81.

It will be appreciated that this nozzle may be moved from a soft floor covering to a hard surface without rcquiring any adjustment whatsoever so that during cleaning when the operator reaches the edge of a rug she may immediately move the nozzle onto a surrounding hardwood fioor and vice versa. The only adjustment which may be desirable is the raising or lowering the rear roller 78 to make the nozzle push with equal case on different types of rugs. Also, the operator may sometimes wish to retract the brush for use on rugs when there is no surface litter, as this will make the nozzle push somewhat easier and will prolong the life of the brush.

While we have shown and described one more or less specific embodiment of our invention, it is to be understood that this has been done for the purpose of illustration only and that the scope of our invention is not to be limited thereby, but is to be determined from the appended claims.

What we claim is:

1. In a vacuum cleaner nozzle, a base member, roller means adjacent to the front and rear edges, respectively, of said member, spaced walls carried by said base member in fixed position with respect thereto and between and parallel to said roller means and forming an elongated suction opening, the respective walls being spaced inwardly from said roller means, the forward wall being closely adjacent to the front roller, the lower edges of said walls being thin to form narrow lips bounding said suction opening, said lips terminating substantially in a plane tangent to the lower surfaces of said roller means, and a gliding surface extending a major portion of the length of and carried by said base member substantially in said plane in spaced relation to the adjacent lip and between said lip and one of said roller means.

2. In a vacuum cleaner nozzle, a base member, roller means adjacent to the front and rear edges, respectively, of said member, spaced walls carried by said base member in fixed position with respect thereto and between and parallel to said roller means and forming an elongated suction opening, the respective walls being spaced inwardly from said roller means, the forward wall being closely adjacent to the front roller, the lower edges of said walls being thin to form narrow lips bounding said suction opening, said iips terminating substantially in a plane tangent to the lower surfaces of said roller means, and a gliding surface extending a major portion of the length of and carried by said base member substantially in said plane in spaced relation to the adjacent lip and between said lip and one of said roller means, and an elongated brush having flexible bristles carried by said base and extending parallel and adjacent to the outer side of one of said walls, said bristles tending to extend below said plane.

3. In a vacuum cleaner nozzle, a base member, roller means adjacent to the front and rear edges, respectively, of said member, spaced walls carried by said base member in fixed position with respect thereto and between and parallel to said roller means and forming an elongated suction opening, the respective walls being spaced inwardly from said roller means, the forward wall being closely adjacent to the front roller, the lower edges of said walls being thin to form narrow lips bounding said suction opening, said lips terminating substantially in a plane tangent to the lower surface of said roller means, and a gliding surface extending a major portion of the length of and carried by said base member substantially in said plane in spaced relation to the adjacent lip and between said lip and one of said roller means, said base member being formed with an elongated recess between said one lip and said gliding surface, and an elongated brush having flexible bristles mounted in said recess, said bristles tending to extend out of said recess and below said plane.

4. In a vacuum cleaner nozzle, a base member, roller means adjacent to the front and rear edges, respectively, of said member, spaced walls carried by said base member in fixed position with respect thereto and between and parallel to said roller means and forming an elongated suction opening, the respective walls being spaced inwardly from said roller means, the forward wall being closely adjacent to the front roller, the lower edges of said walls being thin to form narrow lips bounding said suction opening, said lips terminating substantially in a plane tangent to the lower surfaces of said roller means, a gliding surface extending a major portion of the length of and carried by said base member substantially in said plane in spaced relation to the adjacent lip and between said lip and one of said roller means, and means for adjusting and retaining in adjustment the vertical relationship of one of said roller means with respect to said gliding surface and said lips.

5. In a vacuum cleaner nozzle, an elongated basemember, roller means adjacent to the front and rear edges, respectively, of said member, spaced walls carried by said base member in fixed position with respect thereto and between and parallel to said roller means and forming an elongated suction opening, the respective walls being spaced inwardly from said roller means, the forward wall being closely adjacent to the front roller, the lower edges of said walls being thin to form narrow front and rear lips bounding said suction opening, said lips terminating substantially in a plane tangent to the lower surfaces of said roller means, and -a gliding surface extending a major portion of the length of and carried by said base member substantially in said plane in spaced relation to the rear lip and between said lip and the roller means adjacent to the rear edge of said base member.

6. In a vacuum cleaner nozzle, an elongated base member, roller means adjacent to the front and rear edges, respectively, of said member, spaced walls carried by said base member in fixed position with respect thereto and between and parallel to said roller means and forming an elongated suction opening, the respective walls being spaced inwardly from said roller means, the forward wall being closely adjacent to the front roller, the lower edges of said walls being thin to form narrow front and rear lips bounding said suction opening, said lips terminating substantially in a plane tangent to the lower surfaces of said roller means, a gliding surface extending a major portion of the length of and carried by said base member substantially in said plane in spaced relation to the rear lip and between said rear lip and the roller means adjacent to the rear edge of said base member, and an elongated brush having flexible bristles carried by said base and extending parallel to said rear lip and between said rear lip and said gliding surface, said bristles tending to extend below said plane.

7. In a vacuum cleaner nozzle, an elongated base member, roller means adjacent to the front and rear edges, respectively, of said member, spaced front and rear walls carried by said base member in fixed position with respect thereto and between and parallel to said roller means and forming an elongated suction opening, said inclined downwardly towards the front edge of said member, the forward wall being closely adjacent to the front roller, the lower edges of said walls being thin to form narrow front and rear lips bounding said suction opening, said lips terminating substantially in a plane tangent to the lower surface of said roller means, a gliding surface extending a major portion of the length of and carried by said base member substantially in said plane in spaced relation to the rear wall and between said rear wall and the roller means adjacent to the rear edge of said base member, said base member being formed with an elongated recess bounded by the inclined rear wall and a third inclined wall parallel thereto and adjacent to said gliding surface, and an elongated brush having flexible bristles mounted in said recess in an in clined position substantially parallel to the inclined walls bounding said recess, said bristles tending to extend out of said recess and below said plane.

8. In a vacuum cleaner nozzle, a base member, roller means adjacent to the front and rear edges, respectively, of said member, spaced walls carried by said base member in fixed position with respect thereto and between and parallel to said roller means and forming an elongated suction opening, the respective walls being spaced inwardly from said roller means, the forward wall being closely adjacent to the front roller, the lower edges of said walls being thin to form narrow lips bounding said suction opening, said lips terminating substantially in a plane tangent to the lower surfaces 'of said roller means, a gliding surface extending a major portion of the length of and carried by said base member substantially in said plane in spaced relation to the adjacent lip and between said lip and one of said roller means, and means for adjusting and retaining in adjustment the vertical position relative to said lips and to said gliding surface of the roller means adjacent to said rear lip.

9. In a vacuum cleaner nozzle, a base member, roller means adjacent to the front and rear edges, respectively, of said member, spaced walls carried by said base member in fixed position with respect thereto and between and parallel to said roller means and forming an elongated suction opening, the forward wall being closely adjacent to the front roller, the lower edges of said walls being thin to form narrow lips bounding said suction opening, said lips terminating substantially in a plane tangent to the lower surfaces of said roller means, a

' gliding surf-ace extending a major portion of the length of and carried by said base member substantially in said plane in spaced relation to the adjacent lip and between said lip and one of said roller means, and thin tires mount ed on said roller means and having greater outer diameter than the latter for spacing said lips and said gliding surface above a plane tangent to the lower surfaces of said tires.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 993,694 'Larson May 30, 1911 1,092,823 Chapman Apr. 14, 1914 1,208,351 Moorhead Dec. 12, 1916 2,333,471 Cranmer Nov. 3, 1943 2,544,489 Crabb Mar. 6, 1951 2,658,228 Meyerhoefer Nov. 10, 1953 2,823,412 Kirby Feb. 18, 1958 2,950,497 Smith Aug. 30, 1960 2,974,347 Sey fried Mar. 14, 1961 3,032,800 Anderson May 8, 1962 

1. IN A VACUUM CLEANER NOZZLE, A BASE MEMBER, ROLLER MEANS ADJACENT TO THE FRONT AND REAR EDGES, RESPECTIVELY, OF SAID MEMBER, SPACED WALLS CARRIED BY SAID BASE MEMBER IN FIXED POSITION WITH RESPECT THERETO AND BETWEEN AND PARALLEL TO SAID ROLLER MEANS AND FORMING AN ELONGATED SUCTION OPENING, THE RESPECTIVE WALLS BEING SPACED INWARDLY FROM SAID ROLLER MEANS, THE FORWARD WALL BEING CLOSELY ADJACENT TO THE FRONT ROLLER, THE LOWER EDGES OF SAID WALLS BEING THIN TO FORM NARROW LIPS BOUNDING SAID SUCTION OPENING, SAID LIPS TERMINATING SUBSTANTIALLY IN A PLANE TANGENT TO THE LOWER SURFACES OF SAID ROLLER MEANS, AND A GLIDING SURFACE EXTENDING A MAJOR PORTION OF THE LENGTH OF AND CARRIED BY SAID BASE MEMBER SUBSTANTIALLY IN SAID PLANE IN SPACED RELATION TO THE ADJACENT LIP AND BETWEEN SAID LIP AND ONE OF SAID ROLLER MEANS. 